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Billy Cundiff

            Suede, leather, or a pair of ostrich-skin boots, shoe care can be a challenge. That’s why even when a recession hits, shoe polish is found in ample supply.

            In football, it’s much harder to acquire the perfect polish. If a player is scuffling or scuffed, it’s difficult to cover it up.  Stores don’t stock the kind of polish that’s needed to stand out on the football field. 

            Today, Ashland University’s Billy Cundiff is one of the top quarterbacks in the country.  He’s a refined product, poised in the pocket and in control in any situation. Whether he’s facing a pass rush, an inquisitive reporter or working out under the watchful eyes of NFL scouts, when it comes to polish, Cundiff has more than a Rockports outlet store.

            That was not always the case.   Today, it seems unfathomable that Cundiff was ever anything but an unflappable leader.  This is a guy who has rewritten the AU football record book, the owner of school records for passing yards, total offense, touchdown passes, completions and completion percentage.  Cundiff has been the starting quarterback on two NCAA playoffs teams, something no other quarterback in Ashland history can claim.  As a junior, he was a first team All-America and the GLIAC player of the year.  For most of his career, he’s made playing quarterback look like a stroll in the park, like someone doing the old soft shoe.

            Let’s not forget that life wasn’t always this way. Let’s take a walk in his shoes.

            In 2006, Cundiff came to Ashland University after transferring from Connecticut. He was trying to get comfortable at a new school and with new teammates. The Eagles had three quarterbacks in camp – Cundiff, John Ferguson and returning starter Nick Strance.  AU head coach Lee Owens, who is highly respected when it comes to coaching quarterbacks, was puzzled over how to sort out the situation.  Because he had recruited Cundiff when he was the head coach at Akron, Owens knew more about Cundiff’s potential than anyone else. But he also had the rocket-armed Ferguson, who transferred to AU from Akron and the popular Strance, who was the established starter.

            “That first year was very difficult,” remembered Owens.  “Nick Strance was a very popular player and he was the incumbent.  Then there was John Ferguson who came at mid-year.  It was a very difficult situation.  I didn’t handle it very well, but I don’t know if I could have handled it any different.  You had all three and they had a legitimate case on playing.  Bill and I talked about redshirting.  I said to him, ‘Bill, will you consider a redshirt.?’  It was a mess.”

            Cundiff chose not to redshirt. He had left Connecticut because he was not going to be the starting quarterback. He wanted to play and he trusted his ability to win the starting job at Ashland. But as he now admits, he didn’t know the situation at AU.

            The Eagles had been 9-2 in 2005 and hopes were high for a run to the playoffs in 2006.  That didn’t happen. AU opened the season ranked 21^st and went up against two nationally-ranked teams, Saginaw Valley State (No. 5) and Grand Valley State (No. 1).  AU lost to the Cardinals, 27-16 and at GVSU, the Eagles fell in the closing moments, 30-24.  The Eagles ended up losing three of their final four games and finished the year, 4-6.  Ferguson began the season as the starter with Cundiff getting significant time as a reserve.  Cundiff played in eight games and threw 60 passes. He made the first start of his career in the next-to-last game of the season at Wayne State.

            “We had to consider the future of the program,” explained Owens.  “Ultimately, the decision came down to Bill.  But John battled him the rest of the year and in camp the next year.”

            “It was real tough,” added Cundiff.  “When I came here, I didn’t know about Fergie.  He was a real good quarterback. I got down on myself.  I shouldn’t have, but I did.  As the year went on, my attitude changed. I made friends and things started to turn around.  We were losing, but it turned around.  Fergie and I became good friends and I became friends with Nick.  I’ve always thought I’ve been easy to get along with.  Things started to turn around.”

            It was the kind of turnaround that AU made in 2007, going 8-2 and advancing to the NCAA playoffs for the third time in school history, that Cundiff envisioned when he came to Ashland.  Cundiff was the starting quarterback and he earned second team all-conference laurels while throwing 16 touchdown passes and completing 61.3 percent of his passes.

            Cundiff, who’s from Uniontown, OH, and Green High School, originally cast his lot with Connecticut and head coach Randy Edsall because he thought it was a program on the rise.  Cundiff was recruited by Akron, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan, several I-AA schools and Ashland and Grand Valley State coming out of high school.  As for UConn, Cundiff was correct about the Huskies. They joined the Big East in football in 2004 and have gone to a bowl game three of the last five years. 

            “I liked the campus atmosphere, it’s a lot like what you see in a movie,” said Cundiff of Connecticut.  “I liked the staff and the program was up and coming. It was kind of like here, they were planning a new indoor facility.”

            Cundiff’s plans began to change when he didn’t win the starting quarterback job.  At that point, he began to wonder if a change of scenery wouldn’t be better for everyone.

            “I was always, ‘The Man,” said Cundiff.  “It was really tough to take.  Looking back at it now, my mind wasn’t on football.”

            Once Cundiff began to concentrate on the game again, he considered Ashland.  He started adding up the positives and negatives of making the move and the list on the plus side left no doubt in his mind what he should do.

            “If he left Connecticut, he was coming here,” said Owens.  “He stayed in touch with us that first year at UConn.  There was a comfort zone he was in here.  We had some players from Green here, Ray Kent for one.  I think Bill felt real comfortable.  Sometimes, it’s not the level you’re playing at, it’s where you’re comfortable.”

            What quarterback couldn’t make himself at home in an offense designed like AU’s?  Before Cundiff arrived, Owens talked of the need to get a mobile quarterback with an accurate arm.  In his days at Akron, he had that type of quarterback.  Cundiff completely fit that description.  The coaching staff believed that with Cundiff at quarterback, the program could take off and rise to a level never seen before at Ashland. The coaches were correct.  It’s not wrong to call Cundiff a trailblazer, although he’s a bit hesitant to accept that title.

            “I guess you could call it being a pioneer,” admitted the senior.  “Maybe in the past here, they didn’t have a quarterback who fit.  Coach Owens gave me a chance to do what I can do.  He gave me an opportunity to throw the football. He’s always had good quarterbacks.

            “I thought I’d do well, but I never thought I’d have a chance to move on to the next level,” continued Cundiff.  “I never thought I’d be an All-American as a junior.  Being an All-American was always a goal.”

            Now, Cundiff could reach another goal.  All season, NFL scouts have watched him at games and practices.  Thirty-one of 32 teams have taken a look at him.  This is uncharted territory for a quarterback from Ashland.  From Cundiff’s perspective, this has taken some getting used to.

            “At first, it was real exciting,” Cundiff said.  “You can’t help but notice them, especially at first.  Then I felt myself trying to do too much.  Maybe I pressed a little.  Halfway through camp, I realized if the NFL happens, it happens.  I’ll never get another senior year.  Now I think I’m just playing.

            “You can’t help what the scouts say,” continued the AU quarterback.  “One might love you, one might not.  Whatever, at the end of the day, it’s about wins and losses.  You just have to focus on that.”

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